This invention relates generally to key holders, and more particularly to a key holder which releasably secures a preselected key or group of keys thereto in a manner which permits the key or group of keys to be quickly and easily detached from the main portion of the key holder when desired, and to a key holder which lends itself to many ornamental designs and shapes because of its simple, uncomplicated construction.
A wide variety of keyrings, key holders and key cases have been heretofore available for receiving and maintaining keys in assembled sets so that they are less likely to be lost or misplaced. However, it has been found that for various reasons it is often necessary or desirable to temporarily disassemble individual keys from key holders to prevent the use of the disassembled keys by strangers while at the same time permitting access to the remaining keys on the key holder. This has conventionally been done by having two seperate rings associated with the holder, one of which is releasably detachable from the holder. One set of keys, such as car keys, may be mounted on the detachable ring, while the user's other keys, such as house keys, etc. may be mounted on the other ring. Thus, while the user has to leave his car in a parking garage or lot, where the car keys have to be accessible to the operator of the garage or lot, the ring with the car keys can easily be detached from the holder and left in the car, whereby the holder with the owner's other personal keys such as house keys, may be retained by the owner so as not to be accessible to the parking attendant. One such key holder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,442. A disadvantage associated with this key holder, however, is that the holder is limited to a square or rectangular shape due to the construction of its plunger element which securely retains the key to a body of the holder. Due to design constraints, it would be difficult to vary the shape and size of the key holder in accordance to customer demands (e.g., shaping the key holder to resemble a circular emblem or company logo).
Accordingly, among the several objects of the present invention are the provision of an improved key holder that while being able to readily and easily disassemble one or more keys from the key holder when desired, is also capable of being constructed in many shapes and sizes (e.g., squares, rectangles, circles, ellipses, etc.); the provision of such a key holder which permits one keyring to be disengaged therefrom with a simple manipulation which can be accomplished with one hand; and the provision of such a key holder which is simple in design and easy to manufacture.
In general, a key holder of the present invention comprises a keyring adapted to hold at least one preselected key, and a housing including an arcuate passage formed therein. The housing has a notch formed in its outer periphery which is sized to receive the keyring and a first opening formed therein at one side of the notch which communicates with an end of the passage. A plunger having a flexible arm portion is disposed within the passage and movable through an arcuate path between a position in which the flexible arm portion extends across the opening for retaining the keyring to the housing and a position in which the flexible arm portion is withdrawn into the passage for allowing the removal of the keyring from the housing. The plunger is biased to its keyring-retaining position, and the flexible arm portion is adapted to flex to conform to the shape of the passage when moving the plunger between its keyring retaining and withdrawn positions.